The Dillon tribune., 1887-05-20
PERU'S EXPOSITION:> ::
SCENES IN THE STREETS OF TUE
CITY OF THE k,Ncs."

selI amid some of the strange and inter.
i esting sights of the handsOmest citv in
ah South America. The houses TINT
| lned the streets on e ther side, fairly
teemtng with life, seemed innumerablc.
and stood so closely that their roofs
touched. There Is no space around the
LAneno's residence for the yard-though
many have small, square courts within,
| moro or less unattractive-but we miss
the grass plots, fiowerbeds ant! gravel
walks which enhance the appearance Of
our American homes SO much. Gardens.
however, appear here and there along the
streets-tnvariably, II not public tho
property OF the upper classes--surrounded
by the ever present adobe wall, which
detracts much from their natural beauty.
Yet mud Is very important factor in
Limeno architecture; deprived of it, the
city would be but an unsightly mass of
ruins. Over one-haH of the houses ore
built OF adobe-sun dried brick-rlastered
within and without with mud, and rooted
mainly with red tiles. A couple Of coats
OF whitewash, in lieu Of paint, complete
the dwelling. The poorer classes, who
form the greater portion of the population,
live IN houses Of bamboo, over which q
net work of cane is woven, plastered on
,; all sides with mud, and rooted with bam-
boo or straw. Lima possesses but two
stone btlildings-a flour mill and the peni.
tentiary. A few Of tho fine adobe resi-
dences Of the aristOcracy are, however,
fronted with marble and encircled with
wooden balcOnies and those of the foreign
residents are, in few Instances, built Of
KILN burnt brick--n few being composed
OF timber. But Iima's archways, her
aquetucts her palace, her cathetlruls, her
business blocks and public buildings are
constructed almost entirely Of mud
grimy, unsightly mud overvwhere--a city
of mud. The reason of this--a feature
common to all these countries--is the
great scarcity Of timber and good stone,
the climate and the frequency of earth
quakes; for which latter reason, the
majority Of the dwellings are but one
storied. And it may be in place to re-
mark here that the lower windows of all
dwellings and buildings, both public and
private, in Lima are iron barretl-I pre-
sumo because Of the numerous revolu-
tiOns that occur here SO often, with their
attendant robberies and bloody street
fights.
Another noticeable feature is the ex-
treme cleanliness of the streets and alleys
there IS no dirt or refuse to be seen any
where. The lima board of health, which
evidently understands its business, has
efficient aids in its labors, without which
it would have hard time in fighting
those diseases that ever infcst dirty
tropical cities; these indispensable helpers
arc known in America as ''buzzards,"
and at oil hours of the day they can be
seen standing on tho housetops, their
glossy black feathers glistening In the
sun, or strutting in the streets and by
ways, searching for refuse and filth.
They arc very numerous and increase in
numbers each year, aS there il a strict
law against harming them.
Arriving ut length at the entrance of
the exposition grounds, I alighted, and
paying a paper sole 1--we cents>, entered
through the high, iron barred gate.
Following one Of the ulany neat gravel
walks, bordered with flower beds,
for short distance beneath tho heavy
foliage, found myself suddenly in the
midst Of u perfect wilderness Of sweet
! smelling flowers.
The date, the palm, the banana, the
orange. the cocoanut-in fact, nearly all
| the tropical plants-werc here in abun-
dance. Birds III gay plumage hidden
amid the thick foliage or circling in the
balmy air. were making the gardens ring
| with their strange noises. Monkeys, with
! the concentrated mischief of un American
school boy, were scampering about upon
| all sides. Busts and statues stood in
prominent spots; and arl,ors and cozy
seats were scattered in cool and shady
places. Numerous fountains were fash
| ing in the sunlight, and flowing from
them in every direction, keeping every
| thing green, were small, clear streams
with messy and howery banks, spanned
here and there by rustic bridges, where
one could watch the little fishes disporting
themselves in the lilnpid waters beneath
1t seemed u little Eden. it was SO lovely
and fragrant, so cool and refreshing
Leaving regrctfully my shady retreat,
! entered. the chief buTding Of the four
that in which the Lima exposition was
held in 1872. and the one whcl, is also
used when the annual fair of Peru takes
place. but the buildings have been
stripped of almost all their va]uables--
mostly by the Chilians when in possess
sion Of Lima in ashland little ri interest
now remains save Il few paintings of
South American scenery. which show evil
dence Of great care and considerable tai
cnt: some pieces Of sculpture. and Il great
qnautity of specimens taken from PERU
Wan mines-cvidenc,. y! 'llc wonderful
mineral wealth tEa: lies hdoci IN III"
bowels Of the Andes.
After exploring the ether buildings and
lin,lng nothing of interest. passed ga.
into the gardens AMI visited the wild
beasts that were Gagged in Il long. low shed
in the southern part Of the grounds. But
here, us elsewhere, We're evidences "f the
destructive, thieving propcnsitics "f the
Chili:ns. Before the capture "f Lima
these grounds contained specimens "t
nearly every animal in the world: bat.
after the valiant Chilians had transported
the greater part to Valparaiso-wherc